5 comments about The Crucible (Penguin Classics).

1. The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a great book to read with a mother-daughter book club. It provides an outlet to talk about issues the girls are covering in school, and to find out about how their perspectives differ from those of their moms. The issues of witchcraft and socially sanctioned violence against a targeted group seem eerily relevant to some of the things going on in our world today. This book challenged all of us to think about the most important things in our lives and what we're willing to sacrifice to achieve a higher cause.



2. Daughter needed it for a project for an accelerated class. It came in time and she was able to complete her assignments with a new book.



3. On my walk through the LoA edition of Arthur Miller plays I bypass The Enemy of the People, the Ibsen adaptation, which I think is a waste of everyone's time, and go straight to the Crucible, which I had never read, nor watched on stage or screen. Very odd. It is a truly gripping piece of modern classic stage writing.
   Of course AM needed to educate us always, so this story is not just a story about the witch trials of Salem, when perfectly harmless people, including some citizens of standing in the community, got identified as witches and hanged for it. (Which somehow looks like progress over the burnings in Europe.)
   No, this is generally about fundamentalism and totalitarianism and theocracy, and more specifically about McCarthy and I wouldn't be surprised if it was also about the Ayatollah Khomeini, whatever you may say regarding anachronisms, and the Taliban. Let's not forget the Cultural Revolution of China.
   If I seem to mock the play just a little bit, I haven't made up my mind yet, not quite. There is something strangely wrong in the tone of the dialogues. Can't quite nail it. Anachronistic for sure; is that all? Have to think about it.
   The message that AM put into his morality tale is that power and property interests are behind the maddest manifestations of disinterestedness and righteousness. That was sure true in the other historical witch hunts that we know about. Whether it is an accurate reflection of the Salem case, I do not know. (I will definitely look for the DVD and give DDL a chance for redemption in my eyes.)



4. I really enjoyed reading this classic tale. I found it interesting from an historical and literary point of view. It forces you to think about very real moral dilemmas, like what you might or might not give your life for.



5. This short play dives deep into the minds of those who participated in the Salem Witch Trials during the 1600's. Miller focuses entirely on human emotions as he attempts to discover the real reason for these ridiculous witch accusations. "The Crucible" is intriguing and mind-bottling as readers realize the severity of the trials. Many people's lives were changed and it leaves one to question: "Why didn't anyone verify the claims?" The play centers around a man named John Proctor and his relationship with the young Abigail Williams. John commits adultery, cheating on his wife Elizabeth with Abigail. In the Puritan society, adultery is a major sin in which the individual would face a severe punishment if convicted. When Proctor tells Abigail he does not love her, she takes revenge by accusing Elizabeth of doing witchcraft. The claims are absurd, yet not a single person in the town attempts to clear Elizabeth's name. Abigail uses her manipulative powers to get the other girls in on her plan. The play shows that both fear and revenge can cause people to do horrible things. The townspeople are involved in this "witch hunt" and add to society's ignorance. They fail to challenge authority even though they know what is right. I found this book engaging as I tried to fathom the events that occurred in Salem, Massachusetts. Miller does an excellent job of trying to understand why this happened. I learned that Puritan society was weak and that many individuals feared speaking out against authority. The entire Puritan society was based on control. By instilling fear in people, the Puritan leaders could maintain leadership over the rest of them. This is a great read if you want to try to understand history and apply it to our world today.

5 comments about August: Osage County.

1. I follow the goings-on on Broadway fairly closely, attend theater regularly in Los Angeles, and have recently started buying scripts of the latest plays - especially Tony and Pulitzer Prize winners. I am not particularly educated when it comes to the structure or the art of playwrighting. But I know when I find something inspiring and uplifting. And I must be missing something here. I would imagine the performances of the recent Broadway cast of this play were outstanding, etc. But I somehow fail to see how 3 hours plus of family members with all kinds of crazy problems cussing at each other is inspiring. This play, even though very different in style and content, left me feeling much like how I felt after recently sitting through "Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolff" - what's the point? OK, I'm shallow, but I think there are better things to spend one's energy and focus on.



2. A dilapidated, one hundred year-old farmhouse on the plains outside Tulsa has been the home of the Weston family for generations, and Beverly Weston, the family patriarch, has long found refuge in alcohol. His termagant wife Violet takes pills, whatever pills she can lay hands on, and the two have little in common and have not really communicated for years. Bev, who once published a collection of poetry, now spends time quoting T. S. Eliot, and Eliot's line that "Life is very long..." serves as a motto for Bev in his life. Bev's Prologue sets the tone for the play, and when Act One begins, Bev has disappeared. The family has gathered to support each other while they await news on his whereabouts.
   
   A dysfunctional family which represents just about every problem a family can have, the Westons who have gathered are the three daughters of Bev and Violet, along with Violet's sister Mattie Fay, her husband, and adult son. Barbara, at forty-six the eldest of the Westons' children, has arrived with her husband and precocious fourteen-year-old daughter. Ivy Weston, age forty-four, is unmarried, constantly resisting her mother's meddlesome probing and her cruel remarks about catching a man. Karen Weston, the youngest, at forty, has brought her fifty-year-old fiancé with her. In the course of the three hours or more of this play, the family, overwhelmed by the selfish mean-spiritedness Violet, reveals and/or deals with their self-destructive behavior on all levels--from addictions, unhappy marriages, and infidelity, to sadism, suicide, pedophilia, and even incest.
   
   Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2008, Tracy Letts deals with modern sensibilities but writes in the old-fashioned tradition of Long Day's Journey Into Night, Death of a Salesman (Broadway Theatre Archive), and even Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Big, broad, and complex in its development of the family dynamics, the play maintains a surprising level of black humor, despite the level of misery within this family.
   
   As the action reaches its climax, and the various characters must decide how they will deal with the rest of their lives, the audience sees that the decisions that are made are the only ones that can be made, given the nature of these particular people and their limitations. It would be a mistake to say that the problems are "resolved," but they are, at least, "settled" for the audience. An intense and powerful drama with enough humor to keep the action from overwhelming the audience, August: Osage County is a memorable modern day addition to the tradition of Eugene O'Neill, Arthur Miller, and Tennessee Williams. n Mary Whipple
   
   Man from Nebraska: A Play
   Bug
   Killer Joe, a Play
   Biography - Letts, Tracy (1965-): An article from: Contemporary Authors Online



3. By now, the over-the-top dysfunctional family is almost a cliche, but this is an apt vehicle for many of the tired characterizations in this play: the "wiser-than-all" native American who manages to stand above all the muck; the dumb sister with the sleezeball latest boyfriend; the pot-smoking teen; the pretentious academic who is having an affair with a student.
   
   While the play was entertaining, it was more melodrama than drama. I left thinking, "What was the point of this?" To be fair, I do think I came up with an answer. I believe the playwright is asking the question, "What does 'family' mean?" The play explores some answers to that.
   
   I do not think this play was worthy of a Pulitzer prize or the $102 ticket price that I paid to see it. As I mentioned, it was entertaining, but it's not a play that I'll remember for years to come.



4. Letts (who wrote Bugs), provides a mostly normal dysfunctional family drama with August: Osage County. The play revolves around the disappearance of the patriarch, who leaves the pill-popping, emotionally stunted mother, to look toward her three daughters and her sister to help her sort out what has happened.
   
   This would make a wonderful production, though I wouldn't suggest it for high schools as there is explicit language, smoking, and much drug use. Good, balanced cast.



5. If you saw this most wonderful play and missed a line or two, or want to relive it by reading it, or want to relive it by doing a reading with friends, this is for you. If you missed the play, go see it. Then you will want to order the script, as I did.

5 comments about Sock and Glove: Creating Charming Softy Friends from Cast-Off Socks and Gloves.

1. This book was prefect. I was novice sewer with only little sewing knowledge when I bought this book. It was worth a million bucks. The instructions were easy to follow and within two days of buying the book I was sewing each of my friends two or three little sock and glove animals.
   It's great for last second gifts, birthday presents, and Christmas gifts.
   Who doesn't want a cute, little cuddly friend?
   I made myself three.
   I liked the way the book was setup in story format. Instead of just instructions there was colorful photography and a storyline.
   I'd recommend this for anyone from beginners to experts. Even months later, after I've had much more sewing experience I enjoy using the book and making more stuff animals!



2. This book is awesome. The toys are easy to make - some of them have been completed by my children aged 9 and 11 years old. There is only basic equipment required to make the toys and the stitching is easy. Step by step instructions of each toy and clothes to fit are also provided.
   
   A great gift for someone with young children or a baby on the way. I am going to make these for my friends who are expecting. They will make great cheap gifts for all - christmas, birthday etc. My children have enjoyed raiding their old socks to make new friends...



3. I LOVE sock dolls, and now i LOVE glove dolls too!This book is by far my most favorite book ever on making this type of doll. It is a must have for anyone interested in starting this craft.



4. I found this book very helpful in creating stuffed animals. The instructions are simple and easy to follow. There are also many various animals to choose from. I recommend it highly.



5. I love this book! The pictures are so whimsical. I have recommended it to several other crafty people that I know.
   The directions are very clear and the product - well, now I can create my own "folk art"!! At Easter time all the little people that I know got these zany looking rabbbits made from gloves...

5 comments about Hamlet (The New Folger Library Shakespeare).

1. If you ever thought about reading Shakespeare but was turned off or intimidated by the old english, not so with the new folger editions. Your basically reading the play on all the right sided pages , with the left pages reserved for all the definitions and explanations of the sayings and words that might be dificult to understand. This makes it very easy and enjoyable to read.



2. Hamlet is a book written by William Shakespeare. The book is very thrilling; it keeps you on your feet throughout the read. In the beginning it starts out with a family murder then it moves through incest then a big bang at the end as every major character is killed. This book goes to show that treason gets you know where.



3. What kind of idiot writes this tripe? This is allegedly a "Play" by some long-dead "Master".
   
   Well, let me tell, you: it's boring and derivative. It's about this Prince who doesn't get his father's throne, and feels all depressed about it for a while, and fights back against his uncle (who took the throne and married the prince's mother), to show everyone that it was actually the uncle who killed his father the king.
   
   Excuse me? Haven't we heard this before?
   
   Yep: Disney's "The Lion King".
   
   This is "The Lion King" dressed up in period clothes. Instead of "Simba", we've got "Hamlet". Instead of "Scar", we've got "Claudius". Instead of "Nala", we've got "Ophelia".
   
   And it's in "Denmark", instead of the African Plains. Denmark? Is that even a real country anymore? Anyways, it's called Europe, now; That's a part of London.
   
   And don't get me started on the language this writer used! It's all like it's from the Bible and stuff. Get rid of that, and use real words: Take a lesson from someone like Stephen King.
   
   Don't waste your time with this; watch "The Lion King", and you'll get it. And while you're at it, there's a bridge in Brooklyn I'm selling.



4. I'm going to take some hits for this (by rabid Shakespeare fans mostly), but this play, whether read in a straightforward manner, or analyzed to the hilt, is just somewhat better than mediocre.
   Most folks who would read this work know that Shakespeare's plays are broken down, at the top, into two groups: tragedies and comedies. Hamlet is a tragedy -- the limited humor that one finds herein is pretty darn subtle, (e.g., the comment about Englishmen all being mad). I do not criticise "Hamlet" for that actuality, in fact, I prefer the tragedies. However, the play, as plays go, is simply just so-so. I think folks get 'caught up' in the fact that this is SHAKESPEARE, and therefore, they are SUPPOSED to like it if they have an ounce of culture.
   For people who wish to delve into ecclectic classic works (of all genres), "Hamlet" is difficult to read (unless you're a genius, you sort of have to stumble along and concentrate on what has been said), due mostly to the archaic language. I think, to be a fan of Shakespeare, one must assidiously STUDY Shakespeare... and for those folks who just want 'to read some Shakespeare,' I think that "Julius Caesar" is a much better place to begin.
   The story about Hamlet is essentially a good tale, if a bit drawn out, but some of the details are what make it most interesting. Also, I like any story where madness is a facet of the discussion (I LOVED "The Brothers Karamazov," Dostoyevsky!)
   But to assert that this work is a wonderful read just because it's Shakespeare, is why I say: Methinks it is [just a bit] like a weasel.



5. Hamlet is a must read...end of review.
   No, seriously who can't pass up...
   "to be or not to be that is the question. Whether it is nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outragous fortune or to take on a sea of troubles and by opposing end them. To die to sleep..."
   You'll have to read the play to find out the rest.

5 comments about Macbeth (Folger Shakespeare Library).

1. Shakespeare was not very kind to the linchpin of his story. The tragedy of Macbeth the king became a personal tragedy of Macbeth the character of the play. He is sad, doubtful, fearful and altogether pathetic. In words, he is rebellious against his fate, but in the end he is powerless to do anything to alter it. He is not given an opportunity to shine his wit or spirit. He is not endowed with a single pun. Even Banquo is granted a piece of wisdom: "To win us to our harm, the instruments of darkness tell us truths, win us with honest trifles, to betray's in deepest consequence". Even Polonius is allowed to be witty ("Neither a borrower nor a lender be") and gives us "Though this be madness, yet there is method in't". Richard III is a veritable fountain of spirit, eloquence and wit. Macbeth is just evil and pathetic.
   
   Evil and pathetic is Lady Macbeth.
   
   The colorful relief from the lackluster main characters comes in the form of the porter and fantastical infernal creatures (Weird Sisters, Hecate and the apparitions) - the sole possessors of the playful and witty spirit. Maybe Shakespeare could not allow Macbeth to shine because the play was intended to please James I, the patron of Shakespeare's company and the descendent of murdered by Macbeth Banquo. Perhaps Macbeth indeed was a singularly uninspired man. Or the play may have been cut. Whatever the reason, in this macabre play about a tortured soul, Shakespeare uses spirits and the porter as a valve that relieves the pressure of pent up spark.
   
   The many murders and the eerie creatures make for quite a dramatic staging. However, the general lack of spark makes one miss other Shakespearean plays where the main characters, however evil, are not spared the playwright's poetry...



2. I generally like Shakespeare. In fact, I can't think of one play that I did not like before I read this one. Macbeth I found to be tacky with very few memorable quotes.



3. I'll admit, it's hard for me to get into Shakespeare (so go stone me in the streets, you drama geeks). Yet, this play is a killer.....literally. I mean, they need to make this into a movie nowadays-all the battle scenes, all the drama, all the Scottish accents. This play is the epitome of action-packed. You get the real beauty of this play sitting in your AP Literature class, reading it out loud as a class, and getting the class clown to tackle the part of Lady MacBeth. It's Mac-Awesome.



4. It would be ridiculous for someone to come on here and give Bill a bad review. When a person writes a review on a Shakespeare play, Shakespeare is not on trial, the reviewer is. So, I have no comments on the play, just the series. This is the second Shakespeare work I have read out of the Folger Library series. The running commentary and essay at the end of the play are well done and beneficial. If you enjoy reading Shakespeare, but find the archaic language hard to grasp at times, this is a good series for you.



5. Virtually all editions of Macbeth will have at least some annotations. Rummaging through five different editions, I preferred the Yale University Press version, edited by Burton Raffel, as having the most comprehensive and comprehensible notes, as well as an excellent introduction to Shakespeare's play. Raffel not only explains the meanings of obscure words, but also gives brief notes pertaining to relevant history, geography, stage directions, etc, that are rarely addressed as fully by other editors. In addition, Raffel frequently gives the proper way to stress the syllables in a line when reading it aloud, which can be extremely helpful. (However, in most places these stresses need to be very subtle, so that you don't sound like "taDUM taDUM taDUM".) And Yale's page layout is among the clearest that I've seen.
   
   (To find this edition: at Avanced Search, enter ISBN 0300106548; or, enter Macbeth as title, and either Raffel as author or Yale as publisher.)
   
   As a bonus, this edition includes at the back a long essay on the play by Harold Bloom. This is not an uninteresting commentary, but Bloom desperately needs a good editor. His essay is not only at least three times longer than it should be, but is startlingly repetitious. Yale would have been wise to have asked Bloom for a rewrite.

5 comments about Our Town: A Play in Three Acts (Perennial Classics).

1. What can I say, it is the script to Our Town. I have found a couple of places where it differes from the Samuel French script by a sentence or two.
   
   One VERY GOOD difference is that THIS script also has a lot of background on Thornton Wilder and the times that the existed when the play was writen and first produced.



2. I don't understand why people are saying bad things about Our Town, because it is a very wonderful play with three acts, centering around a small town, Grover's Corners in New Hampshire and the lives of two families, the Gibbs family and the Webb family.
   
   It is a very wonderful play about life in small town before cars and electronics and how they lived. It is a beautiful play that is very excellent and everybody should read it, for it is a quick read, but a very delightful play.



3. By most accounts Thornton Wilder (1897-1975) considered himself a teacher rather than a writer--a curious situation given than he won numerous literary awards, including three Pulitzers. Among these prize-winners was OUR TOWN, first staged in 1938. It is generally considered to be the single most famous play written by an American author, and Samuel French Inc., which holds the amateur performance rights, states that it is performed at least once a day somewhere in the world, as popular abroad as at home.
   
   The play is perhaps most widely known for the way in which it is staged. The stage is bare. A few chairs, stools, tables, and ladders are used to indicate a kitchen, a bed room window, a soda fountain, a cemetery and other locations; the actors mime use of imaginary glasses, plates, bowls, satchels, and boxes.
   
   The story is equally simple. The first act introduces us to the town, Grover's Corners in New Hampshire, seen in the early years of the 20th Century--and most particularly to the Gibbs and Webb families, who live next door to each other. The second act finds boy-next-door George and girl-next-door Emily marrying, and a flash-black shows the audience how their romance began. It is a simple tale, full of details of small town life, church choir on Wednesday night, milk delivered fresh each morning, breakfast to be made, chickens to be fed--and slowly, as the action moves forward, we are drawn into this simple way of life and its seemingly endless and trivial repetitions.
   
   Wilder swirls a number of themes throughout the work, themes that are simple yet profound, details of the particular and the universal--and these gather suddenly, unexpectedly in the third and final act, which comes as a shock after the charming ease of the play. Emily has died in childbirth and she takes her place in the cemetery among the dead, all of whom patiently wait and watch for something which is not yet clear, the minutes passing one by one into eternity, their memories of life fading into nothingness, a portrait of darkness that is yet somehow still seeded with light. It is here that Wilder makes his ultimate statement: who are you when you have been shorn of all earthly details and devices? Where do you exist within the mind of God?
   
   Many non-theatre people find playscripts difficult to read, and in truth playscripts are a blueprint for directors and actors and not intended as reading material for the general public. This is preface to the very basic statement that some plays "read" well and some do not--and that this is not necessarily an indication of how the play actually performs. On the page, OUR TOWN reads a bit flat; it seems a shade obvious, a shade ordinary. On the stage, however, it easily one of the most delicately beautiful constructs imaginable, a play which demonstrates the beauty and value of each life--no matter how ordinary it may be. Remarkable stuff and strongly recommended.
   
   GFT, Amazon Reviewer



4. Thorton Wilder's short play, "Our Town," follows the lives of two close knit families, experiencing the different stages of life: birth, childhood, adulthood and death. I recommend anyone to read this play just so they can have the opportunity to read about the phases that others go through. For example, the story mentions the common worries, concerns and yearnings of parent Mrs.Gibbs, who wishes to take a break from the stressful life of being a mother yet she is held back by the contrasting wishes and aspirations of her husband. "Our Town" is filled with amusing yet relatable events of being disciplined by your parents, which remind us of our childhood, such as when George is admonished by his father. Another interesting tale unfolds as we witness a young relationship between George and Emily flourish into a marriage. Their entertaining anxieties while dating, and even getting married, are humorous and thought provoking for young readers. Unexpected turns of events and sudden losses conclude the story, leaving an important message for the reader which is, care and treasure your loved ones while you still can.



5. One significant feature of this play is its simplicity in both plot and props. While it carries great meaning throughout, the story does not feature any extreme, earth-shattering events. Instead, it presents the plain, daily occurrences in a normal small town, allowing the reader to follow the story in a simple context. In addition, although the reader undergoes a different experience than the play-goer, it is evident to all that the conspicuous lack of props is a prominent element that further emphasizes the simplicity of the story.
   
   In three acts, Our Town presents a complete view of three different stages of life: daily life, love and marriage, and death. The play focuses on two families, the Gibbs and Webb families, yet it gives a panoramic view of many townspeople's lives in Grover's Corners. More specifically, the play follows the relationship between Emily Webb and George Gibbs. We first witness them in their youth, as they realize their passion for each other. The story then skips forward to their marriage and finally to Emily's death, as she is finally able to witness her life without actually worrying about daily demands. When she is finally allowed to witness life in her town pass by as a spectator, Emily falls into a heavy regret at her wasted life, as she realizes that nobody takes the time to truly look at each other.
   
   Stressing the importance of the simple, daily wonders of the world, Thornton Wilder underscores the appreciation of life due to both its brevity and its inherent beauty. The third act is truly epochal, as it presents the general purpose of the play through the death of Emily; as she relives her 12th birthday, she realizes that no one cares to really appreciate each other or their own lives. Emily, as with every other citizen in town, is too concerned with her own life that she is unable to see the beauty of it, and she ends up missing the most seemingly trivial of things afterwards, such as sleeping and taking baths. Wilder, by contrasting Emily's life with her death, demonstrates the consequences of falling into a state of content and complacency with one's life; instead of blindly following a routinely schedule everyday, Wilder teaches the audience that they must be grateful for the daily wonders of life, as they may be gone the next day.
   
   This is not a good book for those seeking entertaining and action-packed plots. Truthfully, I did not enjoy reading this book until I understood the meaning in the final act. At first glance, the play seems to drag on, depicting the mundane lives of ordinary people. Yet when I got to the third act, I realized that this is exactly how Wilder wanted us to feel: bored in the first two acts at the seemingly simple things in life, yet remorseful in the last act due to the intrinsic ungratefulness of our lives. Anyone looking for play with a relevant, significant message to everyone's lives should pick up this book immediately.

5 comments about Romeo and Juliet (Folger Shakespeare Library).

1. Innocent love is the most pure... and the sight of those who are in that beautiful whirlwind of its hypnotic clutches is a sight to behold.
   
   Is it true? "Is youth wasted on the young."
   
   Sometimes, sometimes not.
   
   Romeo and Juliet is the most known western love story of all time.
   
   Why?
   
   This is not an easy question to answer, however, personally, I would never go back to those extremes of pure love; that game playing, jealousy, love-making so innocent,(wonderful) and the relationship inevitably ending in tragedy.
   
   What makes this 500 year old love story one of a kind is its "truth", that we are essentially envious beings, and pure love is something we all either unconsciously or consciously yearn for...and attempt to destroy.
   
   Shakespeare was a clever fellow: with the sacrifice of these two lover's, at last, the feuding families ended their years of fighting... the Montague's & Capulet's. Peace fell upon Verona.
   
   Does true love always end in tragedy?
   
   A good question.
   
   Shakespeares' classic is considered a "love story"; but the Bard revealed pure love's true irony...young love so pure, so intense, so true, the god's become envious and tragedy is pure love's ultimate end.
   
   Very sad, but very true.
   
   As the cliche' goes:
   
   "Nothing ventured nothing gained."
   
   Re-read this beautiful story and reflect that true love just might conquer all.
   
   
   
   
   



2. I'm not a believer in love at first sight, so I always thought the premise was a bit silly. I didn't come to love this play until I taught it to a group of ninth graders during my semester of student teaching.
   
   I had read the play in school, but was never given the opportunity to do more than merely read it. My students were encouraged to act it out and to watch clips from several versions to see how a different director's perspective could change the story. The most fun day was when the class divided up into Montagues and Capulets and hurled Shakespearean insults at each other.
   
   People get scared of the language, but that's really the best part of Shakespeare. Revel in it!



3. "Romeo and Juliet" maintains pace until the very last page. Audacious crashing of the enemy's ball, love at first sight, underground marriage, fateful killings of Merkutio and of Tybalt, exile, ruse with Juliet's death, life-threatening return to Verona, killing of Paris and the double death make it as eventful as any Shakespearean play.
   
   The first pages of Scene I set the tone. The rapid-fire wordplay exchange between Sampson and Gregory will be echoed in the puns throughout the play. The speed with which the servants' brawl escalates to the brawl of their masters will be repeated when the two youngsters, having met at the evening ball, immediately fall in love and the same night decide to marry. The spirit and imagination of the two minor characters, shining especially bright against the clumsiness of the two pater familias, will resurface in the colorful if bawdy Merkutio and the bold old Nurse, dangerously close, respectively, to Romeo and Juliet.
   
   Merkutio and Nurse are the most playful characters of this play. Like Richard in "Richard III", Porter and Weird Sisters in "Macbeth", Fool in "Lear" or Iago in "Othello", they are the recipients of the most animated spirits. While Romeo and Juliet advance the narrative, these supporting characters create sparks for the moment. I enjoyed the play more for these sparks than for the larger movements of the plot.



4. I'll admit that the only reason I purchased this book was so that I didn't have to carry around my twenty pound Literature book. I purchased ths particular copy because it had many of the same interpretations as my Literature book did, so I could carry this little two ounce book around instead.
   
   For all instances, it worked very well. I could read this book along with the movie and follow along flawlessly. I could read the interpretations along the left binding and see exactly what people meant when I couldn't figure it out.
   
   I did, however, have two problems, which is why this is only a four-star review. The first thing I noticed was that even if there were little explanations on the left side, the right side didn't give you a clear indication of what was being translated. You had to actually be confused enough to look to the page on the left, and then you had to find line numbers, which I found extremely irritating.
   
   Another thing I found annoying was that only the bare minimum was actually translated. On further inspection of our ninth-grade Literature book and this book, I found that the Literature book actually went into more detail, with examples, alternate word orders, etc.
   
   Overall, this is an especially great book to purchase if your English teacher suddenly sticks you with Romeo and Juliet two weeks before the end of school. And even if she didn't. :D
   
   But if you're only at the age of fourteen or fifteen, try to stick with your Literature book. I didn't have any trouble, but there are definitely MORE modern interpretations in your Lit book, solely to help with the fact that you're not at a senior or college level yet.
   
   Even if you're only purchasing to get rid of the back strain, you won't regret it.



5. First of all, before I begin actually talking about the story itself, I congratulate Folger's edition for providing summaries in the beginning of each act and definitions of some words. You see, this edition is rather helpful as the story is located on the right pages and definitions and plot synopsis is on the left. This is for the people who cannot understand old English!
   
   Anyways, this was the first Shakespeare book I have ever read, and it is probably the same for all high school students. Obviously I know everyone knows that this is about a love story, so I won't bother mentioning that. I will add, however, that Shakespeare is a master at writing tragic dramas. He was also somewhat witty. It seems that if one pays close attention and reads the prologue, one will find out all that will happen in the plot. An explanation could be because that this was a play and people actually acted his stories out. Well, considering the times, it would not be presumptuous to say that during those times, the more talkative people would still be talking after the play begins, he uses the prologue to hush his audience, and naturally nobody would ever really pay attention to the prologue.
   
   Set around the Renaissance and in northern Italy, the play begins rather comically with sexual allusions and a big ruckus. You have to remember, that not only was Shakespeare's goal to write, but to entertain and make people laugh. He has many intended puns weaved into his story, which are really quite funny, if one reads hard enough.
   
   Shakespeare's forte is weaving a lot of imagery and figurative language in his dialogue. He would paint Juliet as the beautiful, but strong and determined woman bordering between the age of child and adulthood, a teenager. One can see that she is a rather rational thinker, whereas Romeo is impulsive and rash acting only on his emotions and disregarding the consequences. This was the thing that bugged me the most, Romeo's character, although he is a protagonist, I found it impossible to like him, rather I liked his best friend the most, Mercutio. He is the witty prankster who has to die because of Romeo's impulsive thinking, he seems to be the mediator between Romeo and his irrational love, always keeping him in check.
   
   This book is not very long, but the contents are quite deep, there is so much going on in each of Shakespeare's rhythmic sentences, that one just needs to stop and admire how much he can cram into just one sentence, it is just amazing. This makes for a very high re-readability.
   
   Anyone who has not yet read this book is simply deprived, and anyone who has chosen not to read it has sinned! (don't take this too seriously, I am just exaggerating so you guys get my point) So what are you waiting for? Enlighten yourself and discover the poetry in Shakespeare's iambic writing.

3 comments about Backstage Pass: Broadway Bares.

1. had trouble with the first book being damaged and within a day of mentioning it i had another one sent to me



2. For what looked like it was going to be a fantastic look at backstage antics, nudity and actors baring it all, it is a HUGE disappointment. The quality of the photos is sub-par, less than desirable, sort of that hazy "artistic" look that actually is so unclear that often you don't know what the subject is.
   
   HIGHLY DISAPPOINTED, am returning the book right away for a refund...this the first time I've ever returned something to Amazon in over 10 years of using their service.



3. But I actually just have a question: Do the profits of this book also go to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS?

5 comments about Wicked: The Grimmerie, a Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Hit Broadway Musical.

1. Exquisite book! Quality thick pages and glossy finish. The cover is padded and antiqued. The Grimmerie details many aspects of production from casting to sound effects, with individual interviews with principles describing their character development and Wicked journeys. There is even a section on making Elphaba green!!
   
   Although titled The Grimmerie they leave out Elphaba's spells and the script is incomplete which is disappointing. Aside from this, however, the book is fantastic and a MUST READ for any Wicked fanatic!



2. I am a huge fan of Wicked who lives in Oz(Australia). I brought the Grimmerie and it arrived almost 3 weeks early which I was very happy with. I love it and it shows a lot of great information about the cast, crew and making of Wicked. I like some of the other reviewers wish that some of the later cast members were included but it was still a great buy and I'm looking forward to seeing the production in Melbourne and getting my grimmerie signed by the cast.



3. Wicked, the "true" story of the witches of OZ! What a wonderful concept and the play is so marvelous in making the story so believable. The book helps you see the underlying story in the Frank Baum, Wizard of OZ. If you haven't seen the play, the book will intrigue you enough to want to see it, again and again. If you have seen the play, then this book is a wonderful companion. While it has the usual pictures and glossy prints, it also has the script which is superb. The ending is missing from the script, so the play is a must see!!!



4. My 11 year old daughter saw Wicked in December 2007, and was immediately hooked! Soon after she saw the show, she found this book in our local chain bookstore, but decided not to buy it when she saw how much of her Christmas money she would have to spend. So, she patiently waited, until one day she saw it on Amazon for 1/3 less (plus free shipping). She bought it immediately, and has looked at it dozens of times since she got it. **I've looked at it a couple of times myself...** ;-)



5. I really wanted this book. But I did not want to pay the big bucks. So I was so glad that I got an e mail when it was at a lower price.
   
   Thank you

5 comments about Othello (Folger Shakespeare Library).

1. The most beautiful aspect of the play is Iago's ingenious deception of Othello. In every phrase, Iago knows just what to say to swing his Moor closer to the belief in Desdemona's infidelity. The subtle strategist to his general (and the puppeteer to Roderigo and Cassio), Iago is in full glory practicing his art of insinuation.
   
   Iago is the master of duplicity: "Divinity of hell! When devils will the blackest sins put on, they do suggest at first with heavenly shows". Here he echoes Banquo in Macbeth: "To win us to our harm, the instruments of darkness tell us truths, win us with honest trifles, to betray's in deepest consequence". However, while in Macbeth the devious instruments of darkness were netherworldly creatures, here Iago himself takes on devil's work. Treachery plays here the most insidious part: it lays the ground for murder.
   
   Treachery itself takes its roots in hatred. While Richard III and Macbeth are murderers for their own advancement, Iago's guiding star in his hunt is hatred. His "I hate the Moor" at the end of the 1st act, breaking the flow of the soliloquy in which he derides Roderigo (and not unlike Richard III's "Ha!") is the essence of Iago in a line.
   
   The reasons for his hatred are not as clear cut. Iago knows that his being cuckolded by Othello is a mere suspicion (but willfully decides that he does not want to know for sure and will act as if it were true). This is his private (false) excuse for hating Othello. His public one, or at least the one he presents to Roderigo, is having been passed over in the pecking order of military ranking. But he only gives this argument to Roderigo and never repeats it in any soliloquies. And we know how much Iago can be trusted when he speaks to someone else...
   
   His take on Cassio is not much more lucid. Cassio is surely not married, and yet according to Iago, he is "a fellow almost damned in a fair wife" (whether this is one of Shakespearean slips where he forgot to give Cassio a wife or a mutation of "life" into "wife", the phrase is just too beautiful to disregard, even if it does not fit with the text). "He hath a daily beauty in his life that makes me ugly" complains Iago of Cassio. He also worries of having been cuckolded by the lieutenant. The former may signify Iago's fear of looking bad in the face of Cassio's promotion (although "daily" and especially "beauty" do not really fit, so the phrase could signify other things and overall seems obscure). The latter suspicion is just preposterous.
   So it appears that Iago, whom in this play Shakespeare gave most artful language, is sometimes inconsequential and opaque. While it may not have been Shakespeare's intent, one could conclude from this that hatred may exist for Iago without any real reasons at all. Some people fall in love for no reason, Iago may have fallen in hatred for no reason. Maybe Iago's excuses for his actions are just his awkward attempts at justifying his inexplicable hatred?
   
   In any case, with all his hatred and scheming, Iago is another spectacular Shakespearean villain endowed with inspired language. His art of intrigue ensures him a place among Shakespeare's leading characters (villains for the most part) and will entertain our enduring fascination with human nature's dark side...



2. Definitely Shakespeare stays true to his form and creates another literary masterpiece. Just like that of Romeo and Juliet, this is another tragic play. It is set around the early 1600s in England and tells the story of the marriage of Othello, a black man of high standings, and Desdemona, a white lady.
   
   Iago acts as the catalyst for the conflict, trying to disassemble the marriage and Othello and Desdemona. In Shakespeare's dialogue, he uses rather explicit imagery in describing the pair to others to arouse racial prejudice against their marriage. He does all this to get back at Othello for not promoting Iago to a higher position and giving the rank to another soldier. At the climax of the story, the "honest Iago" (yes, I remember this quote quite clearly, as it is mentioned multiple times and is an oxymoron because while everyone believes him to be honest, on the inside he is a clever schemer) successfully convinces Othello that Desdemona has been unfaithful to him.
   
   The story gains its momentum by revolving around the handkerchief which Othello gives to Desdemona.. Iago successfully steals it from her and gives it to Cassio, who thinks another lady has given it to him. When Othello sees the handkerchief in Cassio's hands all the thins Iago says comes back into his head, and he smother Desdemonda killing her.
   
   Shakespeare's play is of a man different from the rest of the people, he is the grey pebble on the sandy shore. This plays into his psyche, making him more susceptible to believe that Desdemona has betrayed him. He also incorporates the settings to his advantage from the more civilized and governed Venice to the island of Cyprus, a place where there is no law. When in Venice, there are no tragedies, all conflicts are resolved through talks and negotiations. However, when they move to Cyprus, the disputes are settled with fighting. The use of nature to determine their motives is another reason why Shakespeare is one of the best writers of his time.
   
   Shakespeare uses the underlying theme of revenge as the basis for his story. It all starts when Othello promotes Cassio to lieutenant rather than Iago, even between Cassio and his own lover, and even extending to Iago and his accomplice, a forlorn man who once wanted Desdemona's hand in marriage. This finally climaxes to Othello and Desdemona. It seems as if the only one who does not take a role in this cycle of revenge is Desdemona. She seems to accept her fate and prays before her death. In the play, she is the most pure of them all.
   
   With Shakespeare's clever banter in Othello and his use of figurative language, he makes this play to be an enjoying one. The story moves quickly and keeps one entranced with Shakespeare's language.
   
   Two words: Read it



3. Definitely another one of Shakespeare's masterpieces. The plot is just enticing and climatic, with many moments of uniqueness and suspense. Besides the awesome plot, it is the reader's engagement in each character's actions that draw this tragedy closer to every reader.
   
   In these 250 pages, Shakespeare accounts one of humanity's darkest secrets--namely vindication. Othello, the main protagonist, married to a beautiful Desdemona, is a revered Christian Moor and an ingenious general of the armies of Venice. Despite this high status, he is portrayed as an easy prey for Iago, the main antagonist. Having hired the less experienced Cassio as lieutenant, Othello has actually marked the beginning of his downfall. Working with Rodrigo who tries to win Desdemona's favor, Iago undertakes the task of destroying both Othello and Cassio. The remaining plot consists of Iago's numerous attempts, failures and successes. Iago, however, does not immediately resolve to using violence to satisfy his revenge, a decision that might surprise the reader at first. On the contrary, he succeeds to win Othello's trust through his malice, manipulative word choices and ironic statements. With Othello trust as his goal, Iago states, "Men should be what they seem, / Or those that be not, would they might seem none!" Hearing this, Othello would build more trust in Iago, who now seemingly shares the same moral principles of Othello. Using this recently gained trust for his advantage and Othello's ignorance, Iago seeds in Othello the thought of Desdemona's affair with Cassio, an action that is purely part of his machinations. The result is obvious: Othello immediately fires Cassio and hires Iago as the lieutenant for his recompense. However, this does not satisfy the antagonist, as he still has not destroyed Othello. Giving him further "proofs"--for these were merely part of his plan and thus not veritable--Iago establishes feelings of hatred and envy in Othello, who now confesses, "I do not think but Desdemona's honest." Othello's change in attitude is manifested as he calls his wife "the whore of Venice" and then "slaps" her, an act that downgrades her and demonstrates his fury. The plot from here is for you to find out. Although the plot is full of deception and destruction, Shakespeare succeeds in having a happy conclusion for this classic book.
   
   Knowledge of both the location and the era in which this book took place is definitely necessary to understand such terms as "the Moor," "Cyrus...Venice," and the abundant contrasts between "black" and "white." The book is set in the end of the sixteenth century, a period when Turkey tried to invade Venice. Most of the plot takes place in Cyrus, one of the Venetian cities attacked and later conquered by the Turks in 1570. Because of his war backdrop, Othello is referred to as "the general of Venice" throughout the book, amplifying his position as a revered leader in society. Othello's true race, on the other hand, has long been debated by critics. "Moor," nowadays, refers to the Islamic Arabic inhabitants of North Africa. In Shakespeare's time, the term might have either referred to Africans from other regions or tanned Europeans. Shakespeare often mentions "the black Moor," ensuring the addition of skin color in order to differentiate Othello from other Venetians. This difference of skin color, however, is ambiguous and should not be interpreted as a racial discrimination as the modern reader might believe.
   
   Overall, a book that describes an individual's vendetta and ultimate downfall, "Othello" is not only as entertaining as another classical masterpiece of Shakespeare's but also a source where readers can truly fathom what we call today Karma.



4. Othello is one of Shakespeare's strongest plays. Certainly Iago is one of his strongest villains. This story is about the differences between good and evil and the struggle that goes on within any persons soul when choices have to be made. Iago is so masterfully portrayed that I felt strangely disturbed when I finished this play. Other characters in the play are also wonderfully portrayed. This is certainly one of Shakespeare's greatest tragedies.



5. This book is great for people that have a difficult time understanding Shakespeare. The side notes are more elaborate than most of the other editions and they include an act by act summary so that you know exactly what's going on and don't get lost in all the wording.